Brindisi and Picente promote tax cut proposals

Friday

Jan 17, 2014 at 1:52 PM

If Gov. Andrew Cuomo's tax proposals pass, residents could see a little bit more money in their pocket next year.

Steve Hughes

If Gov. Andrew Cuomo's tax proposals pass, residents could see a little bit more money in their pocket next year.Cuomo has proposed a series of tax cuts that would affect homeowners, renters and upstate businesses.Friday morning, Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi, D-Utica and Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente voiced their support for the measures during a news conference in the Bank of Utica."The governor has a solid plan when it comes to homeowners," Brindisi said. "New Yorkers pay some of the highest property taxes in the nation. Simply put, a tax cut package that takes aim at property taxes is a plan we need to support and a plan we can all bank on."For homeowners Cuomo proposed a two-year property tax freeze, along with an additional rebate, termed a "circuit breaker".The circuit breaker would give homeowners who make less than $200,000 a rebate of up to $1,000 if their state income tax exceeded their property tax bill.If local municipalities keep their tax increases within the property tax levy cap, property owners would also get a rebate from the state equivalent to the increase.In the second year, municipalities would also have to show concrete steps to share services and consolidate with other local governments for property owners to receive the rebate.Oneida County is already sharing services and the tax proposals will be boost for local manufacturers, Picente said."That's what it's all about and we know that in Oneida County," he said. "In fact, we've stayed within the cap. We froze taxes. It can be done, there are hard decisions that have to be made at a governmental level and the governor is right on target when he says that's how we attract business and people to New York State."Renters would also be eligible for a personal income tax credit for families making under $100,000. Upstate manufacturers would have a zero corporate tax rate and a rebate worth up to 20 percent of their property taxes from the state.Cuomo will give his budget address Jan 21.For Whitestown resident Brian Hudson, the circuit breaker and property tax freeze would bring much needed relief.Since he built his home in 2006, his property taxes have gone up and the burden is affecting his family, he said."I'm paying nearly $3,000 more in property taxes than I am in state income taxes," he said. "I'm paying nearly 4 percent of m y home's value, based on a recent market assessment, in property taxes every year, which far exceeds the national and New York state average."